Last Saturday was a very big day for all of us. It was the day where all of the research and work that we had done in the past three months culminated to a big Research Symposium. During the Research Symposium, each research group gave presentations about 
their research, booths, and posters. This was a little different from the presentations we did during Parent’s Weekend because we were presenting all of our work to people who could look at our results and make change in the Bahamas, and in the world. The Bahamian Minister of Environment attended the symposium as well as Friends of the Environment, BREEF, and many other NGOs. To see these people listen to and think critically about our research made me appreciate and feel proud of all of the work we accomplished these past few months. Continue reading
January 5th Boston Reunion Schedule!
DCMS Grade 9 Learn to Scuba Dive
In SCUBA, I have learned and experienced a lot. I have come to love and enjoy the fun of SCUBA diving. SCUBA has become one of my favorite hobbies. I love the feeling of getting into the water with my classmates and exploring the underwater world of The Bahamas.
My instructors Captain Ron Knight, Karen Knight and Mrs. Walker make diving fun. The Deep Creek Middle School offers us Ninth Graders the opportunities to not only learn to such an interesting subject, but to become certified divers. We also learn about the physics of SCUBA in Science class. All of the equipment is provided by The Island School. Captain Ron and Karen Knight are really great instructors. It has been fun learning from the best. SCUBA diving is a big opportunity for all to explore the underwater world. I’m looking forward to becoming a certified diver.
By: Shaquille Carey
Maxey Celebrates a Monumental Research Symposium
Dear Proud Parents,
We circled up at noon; I was moved to tell your children in the more intimate moment of our small circle how proud I am of the good work that has been accomplished. Yesterday after the research presentations we gathered in Hallig House to listen to key note speakers share impressions. Eric Carey, Executive Director of the Bahamas National Trust, is big in stature and huge in spirit and brutally honest; he was “blown away” by the work. Eric mentioned specifically the turtle project at Half Sound and the conch research as monumental and pioneering efforts that will encourage (he used the word force) the government to enact laws to protect and conserve these vital habitats and endangered species. As a boy growing up in Tarpum Bay he confirmed the story retold by the research team, ” when I was young we would go to Sandy Cay and load our boat with 100s of conch that sat dry at low tied and if you go back now you can not find a single conch.”
Next to speak, Mr. Sandy Mactaggart, Chancellor Emeritus University of Alberta. Sandy has dedicated his full and extremely successful life to save beautiful places; he realized that the work here by young scientists proved beyond a doubt that education as it continues to exist is tragically flawed. He then shared a story; I encourage you to read the link, http://philosophy.lander.edu/intro/introbook2.1/x874.html . Your children are producers of knowledge, they have stretched to ask and answer new questions and they are well tested and confident — watch out world!
Last to speak was the Honorable Kenred Dorsett, Minister of the Environment, Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Continue reading
Eleutheros
The Human Ecology, Histories, and Literature Departments have collaborated on a series ongoing personal reflective essays called Eleutheros. Each week students are asked to write a reflective essay that demonstrates their understanding of the themes from their coursework and effectively links these themes to their unique thoughts and experiences. For each essay, students are asked to answer a new interdisciplinary prompt which inspires an integrated reflection on class learning. Our final essay asked students look at their academic semesters holistically and consider the value of their learning. In the coming week, look forward to some articulate examples of how our students have deeply and personally engage with this essential question. The prompt: So What? Why does what you have learned in your classes matter?
by Ryan Schendel:
My parents always told me it started when I was four years old. According to them, we were sitting on a plane on the way to North Carolina, and I turned to my dad and asked him a question. Apparently, it was a basic question like, “Where are we going?” and “How big is this plane?” In the number of times I have heard this story from my parents, they always exaggerate more and more, but as I have been told, by the time we had landed, I had asked them hundreds of questions over the course of two hours. My dad always told me how exasperating it became, but he and my mom were glad that I turned out to be a curious boy.
I have been asking questions throughout my entire life. I always look at the world as a great wealth of information that I can learn about through asking. My teachers at school tell my parents every year that they’re amazed at how inquiring I can be and how often I ask questions, even if it eventually bothers them. My grandmother, who used to be a high school English teacher herself, has always told me, “Don’t stop your questions. You can always learn something new, you just have to ask.”
Reflecting on my life before The Island School, I came to believe that I arrived on Eleuthera because I was curious. My sister embarked on a semester in 2010, and she returned home as someone who I did not recognize anymore. She had changed in positive but drastic ways, and seemed to be extremely happy in regards to her time here. I wanted to know why. I did not want to only hear her stories about The Island School. I needed to come here and experience it myself. Continue reading
Student Update November 30, 2012
Continuing the trend of lasts, yesterday was our last class for Human Ecology Final Projects. Jack and I finished up our inner loop project. We were finally able to put the signs up around the inner loop and we also cleared up several trails for future explorers. I can’t wait for today’s Human Ecology extravaganza and show what we have accomplished. We will be giving short presentations about each of our projects, on a rotating schedule all afternoon. And, we will be hosting local students guests from Deep Creek Middle School and Central High School.
In the afternoon, I was with my awesome advisory and we worked on our Demonstrations of Learning that we will present together on Monday. The DOLs are our final assessments, showing what we have learned here for the past three months. People can do Power Points, speeches, or any other creative way to express what they have learned.
Afterwards, I went with my kayak group, K2 (wahoooooo) to eat dinner early, and leave for our night dive. Continue reading
NYC Admissions Reception
We had yet another successful admissions reception last night, this time in New York City at the home of Tommy Robertshaw (Su’12) and his family. It was an incredibly impressive turn out with over 60 prospective students, families, and alumni in attendance! Thank you to everyone who came to the reception! An even bigger thank you to the Robertshaw family for hosting such a wonderful event–and for finding the space in their home for all the guests!
New York Harbor School in the News
At the Island School we are always excited to see students working to solve real world problems. We are especially proud of our friends at the New York Harbor School who were recently featured in the New York Times’ Dot Earth blog. Check out their innovative insights into how they are working to protect their region against future threats of storms like Sandy: Students Press the Case for Oysters as New York’s Surge Protector
Student Update November 28, 2012
Yesterday was the last full day of classes. Although some of us were sore after the big events over the weekend, we pulled through and were able to wrap up each class very well. Our classes were math, histories, literature, and art. I really enjoyed histories yesterday where we talked about an article from The New Yorker called The Headstrong Historian. It told a story about the colonial past of Nigeria, the impact of the Christian missionaries on the people, and how a family changed because of it. I especially liked this reading because it had a lot to do with the concepts we’ve learned in the Humanities curriculum here. I thought it was interesting to see parallels between the Nigerian family who had sent their children to a Catholic school to learn the ways of the white man in order to regain the land they had lost, and our book from literature, Omeros. A lot of change happens in Omeros with the personal journeys of Achille, one of the main characters, and the author himself. But in the end, amid all the tourism coming into their island of St. Lucia, Achille does not give into tourism and retains his connection to the sea. I appreciate how the concepts from a single class here can inform and enrich our learning in other classes.
Last night during study hours, we also wrote letters to our sending schools to tell them about the experiences we’ve had here. It’s been amazing here, and I can’t believe we only have 9 days left in the semester.
Admissions Reception at Cohen Home in Westport, CT!
Last night, a number of prospective students, as well as Island School alumni and alumni parents gathered at the home of Carolyn, Gary, and Rachel Cohen (S’12) in Westport, Connecticut. A huge thank you to the Cohens for opening their home and hosting such a successful admissions event! We appreciate everyone who came out for the event–it was great to see you!
[slideshow]
We are nearing the end of our tour of fall admissions receptions! Our next reception is tonight in San Francisco at the Hunt household (Griffin Hunt, F’11). On Wednesday evening, the Robertshaws (Tommy Robertshaw, SU’12) in New York City will be hosting a reception, and finally on December 5th, we are hosting a reception in the Baltimore, Maryland area at the Obrecht Home (Annie Obrect, S’12). For more information on these receptions, visit our website!